Memories of Florida

Okay, I know that this is not really related to South Jersey, but I also know that no one really reads my blog, so I figure I'll put this out there.

My paternal grandmother died today. She had just turned 90 on April 1st and was the subject of my memoir project for a writing class I took last year in graduate school (back when my MA was writing and not education). Anyway, I'm really sad and I just wanted to reflect on some of the memories that I have of her.

Her and my grandfather (deceased about 10 years ago) used to live in Delray Beach, Florida. That is near Palm Beach and Boca Raton. My family and I used to visit them every summer for about a week. Because my dad did not like to fly on planes, we usually drove down. At first, the trip was my three older brothers and me. Then it became just my brother, Rob, and me. And then, it became just me with my parents. I have some of the best memories of those road trips. We would always play the Bob Marley Legend tape in the car. Rob and I would rock out to "I Shot the Sheriff" and I'd have a bag full of goodies to keep me busy- drawing paper, books to read, stuffed animals to cuddle, etc...We'd always stop at plenty of fast food places along the way- some of them now defunct such as Roy Rogers and Hardees, and enjoy getting our kids' meals. Somewhere, I still have all of those toys.

Sometime along the way I would begin to notice signs for Pedro and South of the Border. I LOVED seeing those signs. When we would pass South of the Border, I would keep my eyes close to the window, trying to see as much of it as possible. We begged and begged our parents to take us there, but only once did they stop. Rob was happy to purchase fireworks there and I think I got a book that showcased photographs of the billboards.

We would always spend the night in the same Holiday Inn every year. This was in either South or North Carolina. I know I used to comment that the waitresses sounded like cowgirls. And they did because we were down south! I remember the lobby of this place real well because there was always candy for sale and I don't think I was allowed to have any. I always enjoyed their playground and always asked if I could go in the pool but was always told maybe and it never ended up being yes. We were so poor back then too that we didn't even have luggage; we used black trashbags to transport our stuff. I think my favorite part of the hotel was breakfast. It was just so much fun to eat in their restaraunt for some reason.

Back on the road, I would get excited when I started seeing palm trees. Sometimes I'd count them. I got cranky in the car. Sometimes my mom and Rob would trade seats so that she'd sit in the back with me and he'd go up front with my dad. Then I'd get to lie down and keep my head in her lap and she'd pet me or maybe read to me.

When we arrived in Florida, it was still a bit of a drive to our actual destination. I would be so happy, though, to get to their neighborhood- a retirement village of sorts, complete with a pool, clubhouse and shuffleboard court. My pop pop would be nervously meandering the neighborhood, on the look out for our car. I loved to see the huge fountain that swayed itself over the lake in the beginning of the neighborhood. Then we'd see my pop pop and he'd walk back to their condo and as soon as we'd park the car, he immediately began seizing our luggage and taking it indoors where my grandmother was.

Our first night there was nothing too fancy. Usually, we would eat a dinner of cold cut sandwiches. Who knew how long the cold cuts had been in the fridge? I sometimes didn't want to eat them, knowing this. There'd be chips and pickles and sodas and things, all from Costcos and Publix. And while my grandparents would be shoving food down our throats, they'd also be the first to tell us how much weight we've gained. We'd do little more than take a walk around the neighborhood, looking for salamanders and frogs or unpacking our things before going to bed. Usually, my parents slept in the Florida room on the pull out bed while Rob and I slept on the couches or on cots, all made up with the same orange and yellow butterfly and floral patterned sheets.

Now I want to go into what their house looked like. Every detail. The outside was white. Their last name was on it. You'd go inside and see the Florida room to your right. The Florida room was a room on the front of the house with windows in front to let the sunlight in. They had the couch with the pullout bed in there along with a tv and a little yellow breakfast table that I liked a whole lot. On the table was a paperweight made of pennies. I loved it.

The foyer had this large black laquer dresser thing in it, with a mirror on top and matching accessories, including a white woman's head thing. Then there were the couches and the painting that my Aunt Nellie made of the lilly pads. Behind that was a closet with a mirror on it. All across from that area was the dining and kitchen area. There was a large green cabinet of sorts that held treasures inside. There was the dining table in front of the mirrored wall. Chairs had pillows on them for extra comfort. There was a matching green tea cart in the corner and outside of the kitchen was a picture of some kind of animals- I know that my pop pop's sister brought it back from Israel.

My grandmother kept special jewelry in the kitchen. She also had a little tv in there and a stool by the sink that sometimes I sat on. On a shelf above the sink were some little knicknacks include a plastic Mexican boy figurine. The fridge had lots of magnets and photos on it. Cereal was not kept in boxes but in plastic containers.

Before you got to the hallway, you would see a statue of a boy holding a fish. I really don't know what happened to this piece but I loved it. You could use the bathroom which had another picture I loved hanging in it of frog. Also, the wallpaper in this room had a strange brown pattern.

My grandparents bedroom had a tv in it and their blue bed. They also had framed photos of clowns that had come from a calendar. In front of their closet and next to their bathroom was a desk area with a mirror above it. They had some older photos hung up ther eof my brothers when they were younger. In this room too was a picture that now hangs in my bathroom- a drawing of a lady in her robe in her bedroom. Their bathroom was large and had a picture that I liked al ot of naked women on the beach. Always interesting art in their house.

And that's really it. Those are my favorite details. You could walk to the pool or shuffleboard. We did both. I liked to go swimming with my dad and play shuffleboard with my brother and my pop pop. We would go to the beach or out to eat or to Mizner Park or Butterfly World or other numerous places. My parents were always trying to find out ways for us to have fun down there.

I don't want to stop writing, but I have to. I need some sleep but I promise to put more details in later. I promise.